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There are ten hymns in
Atharva Veda on this topic. Usually brahmacharya is
translated as celibacy. But its literal meaning is “to move in
Brahma” or “to move towards the supreme state of consciousness
named as Brahman.” Typically it signifies the comprehensive
education received by a young person in Vedic times before s/he
married and led the family life. The education includes not only
the study of the various subjects but also the spiritual
initiation, dīkşha by special methods. Dīkşha even
today is an important aspect of spiritual life.
The hymn
(11.5)
in Atharvaveda is the earliest attempt to describe the
process of dīkşha or initiation by a teacher or guru. The
knowledge is imparted by an occult means. Modern spiritual
biographies like “The Gospel of Sri Rāmakrişhņa” describe this
process in some detail. This hymn metaphorically describes the
rişhi as keeping the disciple in his womb, impart power to him
and make him grow. This procedure is represented symbolically even
today in the ceremony of sacred thread upanayanam by
enclosing the disciple and the teacher by a single cloth and the
teacher giving the mantra to the disciple in his ear.
"The āchārya
initiating him, takes the
Brahmachārin
within him as a mother the child;
Three nights he
carries him like a mother bearing the child in her womb,
And to see him
when born, devās come in body [AV.11.5.3]."
No wonder the
spiritual initiation is called as a second birth for the student.
The translation of the
entire hymn is in
AV (11.5)
The conclusion of the
brahmachārin’s study is described in
24th
verse of same hymn.
"The
brahmachāarin bears the radiant Brahman
Where in all
devās are woven together
Creating breath
and in-breath prāņa and out-breath apāna
Word, mind, heart,
sacred knowledge and wisdom."
We see here the first
occurrence of the words prāņa, apāna, vyāna in the Indian
tradition.
Another hymn
AV (6.133)
of five verses describes the power of girdle of brahmachārin,
mekhala. It is not of course, the physical cord but the
enveloping power. So it is said to give tapas, vigour, and
intelligence.
ATHARVA VEDA
(11.
5)
BRAHMACHARYA (Vedic
Education)
Rishi: Brahma
The brahmachārin
moves, strengthening both the worlds,
in him the devās
meet in concord;
he upholds earth and
heaven; he satisfies
his āchārya
with the power of tapas.
-----------
(1)
Fathers and Divine
bands follow the brahmachārin,
and all the devās
severally follow him;
Gandharvas
follow him, the three and thirty,
three hundred, six
thousand;
and he satisfies all
the devās by his tapas.
-----------
(2)
The āchārya
initiating him, takes the
brahmachārin
within him as a mother the child;
three nights he carries
him like a mother bearing the child in her womb,
and to see him when
born, devās come in a
body. -----------
(3)
One sacrificial wood is
the earth, the second the heaven,
and the mid-air he
fills with the sacrificial wood;
The brahmachārin
with the sacrificial wood, his belt,
and labour, satisfies
the worlds with his tapas.
-----------
(4)
The brahmachārin,
born before the sacred knowledge,
robed in libation,
stood up with his tapas:
through him were
manifested the sacred lore,
highest brahman,
and all devās with
immortality. -----------
(5)
The brahmachārin,
bright with the blaze of the sacrificial wood,
comes, clad in black
buck-skin, consecrated, long-bearded;
and he forthwith goes
from the eastern to the northern sea,
and grasps the world
together, constantly drawing them
near. -----------
(6)
The brahmachārin,
manifesting sacred wisdom, the waters, the world,
the Creator, the
supreme Being, the Lord of splendour,
and, becoming a child
in the womb of immortality,
became Indra
and destroyed the Powers of darkness.
-----------
(7)
The āchārya
built up the two cloud regions,
and these deep,
spacious Two - the Earth and the Sky;
these the
brahmachārin protects with tapas,
in him the devās
meet in
concord. -----------
(8)
The extensive earth the
brahmachārin
was the first to
bring as alms, and the heaven too;
of these two he makes
the sacrificial wood and attends on them;
on these two are laid
all the living
things. -----------
(9)
One on this side, the
other beyond the ridge of heaven,
the two treasures of
sacred knowledge lie hidden in mystery;
these two with his
tapas the brahmachārin protects,
and, having known
brahman, he makes all this his
own. -----------
(10)
One on this side and
the other beyond the earth,
the two Fires meet in
the cloudy region;
to these are attached
two firm rays of light,
these the
brahmachārin enters through his tapas. -----------
(11)
Rumbling, thundering,
red and whitish, he
carries along the
earth his mighty vigour;
on the earth's ridge
the brahmachārin pours
his virile power ; by
that the four quarters
live. -----------
(12)
In fire, in the sun,
the moon, the wind, and the water
the brahmachārin
place the sacrificial wood,
the rays of light move
severally to the cloud,
the molten butter is
man, and rain and
waters. -----------
(13)
The āchārya is
Death, he is
varuna,
soma, plants water;
the clouds were
warriors ; by these
the heavenly lustre
was
brought. -----------
(14)
varuna,
becoming āchārya, makes
the sacrificial
butter at home his own ;
whatever he wished from
prajāpati, the
brahmachārin
gave, as a friend, from his lofty
soul. -----------
(15)
The brahmachārin
is āchārya,
the brahmachārin
prajāpati,
prajāpati
shines splendidly,
the Lord of splendour
became indra,
Ruler. -----------
(16)
By the tapas of
brahmachārya
the king protects the
state;
by the tapas of
brahmachārya
the āchārya
seeks his
pupil. -----------
(17)
By the tapas of
brahmachārya
a maiden finds a
youthful husband;
by brahmachārya
the bull
and the horse seek
their
fodder. -----------
(18)
By the tapas of
brahmachārya
the devās
drove away death;
and indra
through brahmachārya
brought heavenly
lustre to devās. -----------
(19)
What is and what will
be, day and night,
plants, the lordly
forest trees,
the year with the
seasons, all
sprang from the
brahmachārin. -----------
(20)
Creatures of the earth
and heaven,
the wild and the tame
animals,
the winged and the
wingless, all these
sprang from the
brahmachārin. -----------
(21)
All prajāpati's
children bear
their breath
separately in themselves;
All these the
brahman, lodged within
the brahmachārin,
protects. -----------
(22)
The power generated by
the devās, having
not yet ascended
high, moves about, shining bright;
from that were
manifested the sacred lore,
highest brahman,
and all the devās with
immortality. -----------
(23)
The brahmachārin
bears the radiant Brahman,
wherein all devās
are woven together,
creating breath and in
breath and out breath,
word, mind, heart
sacred knowledge and
wisdom. -----------
(24)
Give us sight, hearing,
glory, food,
virility, blood and
stomach. -----------
(25)
Forming these on the
surface of the flood,
the brahmachārin
stood up in the sea practising tapas,
and, having bathed, he,
brown and yellow, shines greatly on
earth. ----------- (26)
ATHARVA VEDA
(6.
133)
THE BRAHMACHAARIN'S
STRING CONNECTING TO GODS
mekhala:
string connecting us to
gods, girdle
The deva who has
fastened this girdle (mekhala) on us,
who made us ready and
attached us to our work,
the deva by
whose directions we move,
may he take us
across, may he free us ! -----------
(1)
Thou art invoked and
praised, Girdle !
Thou art the weapon
of Rishis.
Tasting the
milk-offering first,
be a hero-slayer in
combats. -----------
(2)
Because I am a
brahmachaarin of Death,
having selected out
of living beings
a man for yama,
I, with prayer and tapas
and labour bind him,
him I bind with this
girdle. -----------
(3)
Daughter of Faith, born
of tapas, she has become
the Sister of
world-creating Rishis. And so,
Girdle ! give us
thought and intelligence,
give us tapas
and the vigour of
spirit. -----------
(4)
Thou whom the ancient,
world-creating
Rishis fastened
around themselves,
may thou, Girdle,
circle about me
so that a long life I
may
live. -----------
(5)
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